Rare diseases · Sign or symptom
Abnormally slow thought process
Mental slowness
HP:0031843
What it means
An inner sense from the self that thoughts are abnormally slow and the individual feels that they are unable to increase their rate of thinking. The primary pathology is the decreased rate and other qualities of thinking (e.g. naming of objects) are intact, just slowed. This may be associated with slowed speech, but may be internal and masked by speech that is limited to brief (yes or no) answers.
Rare diseases that can present with this6
The range is how often this sign appears among people diagnosed with each disease — it is not a probability of having any of them. Many of these signs also occur in common, non-rare conditions. A sign on this page is a conversation to have with a clinician, not a conclusion.
Part of the broader category
Also called: Abnormally slow thought processes · Bradyphrenia · Slow thought processes · Slowed thinking · Slowed thoughts · Slowness of thought
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Start free with EleplanThis page uses the Human Phenotype Ontology (2026-06-23) — Human Phenotype Ontology Consortium, hpo.jax.org. Disease associations from Orphanet (INSERM), CC BY 4.0. Content is educational and is not medical advice.